# diarrhea

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˌdaɪ.əˈɹiː.ə/ · frequency rank #13,902

## Definitions
1. A gastrointestinal disorder characterized by frequent and very soft or watery bowel movements.
2. The watery or very soft excrement that comes from such bowel movements.

## Etymology
From Middle English diaria, from Middle French diarrie (French diarrhée), from Late Latin diarrhoea, from Ancient Greek διάρροια (diárrhoia, “through-flowing”), from διά (diá, “through”) + ῥέω (rhéō, “flow”). By surface analysis, dia- + -rrhea. Spelling later altered to resemble the word's Latin and Greek roots.
Displaced native Old English ūtsiht (literally “straining out”).

## Common misspellings (9)
`dairrhea`, `ddiarrhea`, `diarhea`, `diarhrea`, `diarreha`, `diarrhae`, `diarrhhea`, `dirarhea`, `idarrhea`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/diarrhea